How To Prevent Baby Thrush In Newborn Baby?

Infant thrush or baby thrush is an overgrowth that can be seen in mouth of your baby.

This infection is due to the yeast called Candida Albicans.

This even occurs due to diaper rash. It can be found in genital areas, intestine and mouth.

It is common in infants up to 5 to 6 months of age.

Recognisition of baby thrush:

The characteristic milky or whitish patches or spots inside the tongue, lips, cheeks or gums are recognized as the thrush. It appears on the tongue as a white thick coating.

Do not scrap the baby thrush, as they bleed in doing so. This infection is not dangerous but it makes your baby’s mouth sore. You can face the problem while feeding your baby.

There is no definite cause for the thrush in your baby. It is not a contagious disease. It is an over growth of the yeast in your child’s mouth. The yeast can grow even when the antibiotics are taken.

There is no harm with this problem. It just irritates your baby’s mouth and leads to some problem while feeding. It will be painful when it becomes severe.

Some ways to treat the baby thrush:

1. The toys that are chewed by your baby should be sterilized every day by hot water.

2. The baby pacifiers and nipples should be sterilized by boiling them in hot water for 20 minutes, so that the bacteria are killed.

3. Nystatin - This is anti-fungal liquid. Give this liquid to your baby daily (four times). Continue this liquid at least for five days, as this thrush is quite stubborn. Nystatin does not get absorbed into the blood stream but it goes out of the stool.

4. If the Candida is resistant, apply 0.25-0.5% of gentian violet for 3 days to the nipples twice a day. This is very effective.

You can apply small amount to the mouth of your baby and before that, apply Vaseline to their lips to avoid violet stains. Take care that only little amount is taken, otherwise it can lead to irritation of the mucus membrane of the mouth.

Note: To treat the thrush, the gentian violet was used for many years, but according to recent studies in Australia, this is linked to the mouth cancer. But, other professionals believe that it is safe to use. It will be better to use in less quantities.

Tips to prevent the baby thrush:

• After every feeding, the nipples should be dried.
• To rinse away the residue of the milk after the breastfeeding, give the sterilized water to your baby to drink.
• Always clean and sterilize the pacifiers and bottles and allow them to dry thoroughly.